Peru is a
multifaceted travel destination offering something for everyone and every type
of trip. However there is one area in which the country is peerless: in the
range and diversity of its possibilities for adventure tours and trips.
Peru is a huge
country, but dense jungle makes up for 60% of the landmass and here you can
find wildlife that you've never seen before along with riddled webs of waterways
and rivers. It is the best location for adventurous travellers.
Doubtless best
known for its wealth of trekking routes, not least the Inca Trail, Visitors to
Peru are also blessed with many other opportunities for adventure, including in
one of the most challenging of all Earth's environments; the jungle. You may
visit the Tambopata
national reserve.
Manu is a UNESCO
World Heritage Site and is one of the most untouched areas of jungle in the
world. It offers a better chance of seeing more animals than you will typically
find in Tambopata, including many types of monkeys, jaguars, tapirs, giant
otters, black caimans, spectacled bears and more.
Tours can be of
varying lengths but, generally speaking, the more time you can spend, the
deeper you can penetrate into the jungle. This will allow you a better
opportunity of viewing a great variety of flora and fauna.
Tours to
Tambopata also start in Puerto Maldonado and often include river travel as well
as hiking. Night walks are especially popular as many of the animals are more
active at this time. There are some tours which offer visits to clay licks
where you will have the best chance of seeing a large variety of parrots.
Somewhere around
1000 different bird species make their homes there. Some Short Tours in the Amazon of
Peru start in Puerto Maldonado from where river transport is taken to
enter into the jungle. Sometimes, going from Cusco on land transport is done.
The main plus to
this choice is that wildlife is guaranteed which isn't always true with remote
tours. This can be of particular benefit if you are traveling with children.
The minimum
length of tour is 3 days and 2 nights although, as mentioned earlier, longer
tours will allow you to see more. Some tours, particularly the shorter ones,
are in areas where the animals seen are fed regularly and it is more like
seeing them in an animal park as opposed to in the wild.
To get to the
Pacaya-Samiria National Reserve, you will need to first get to Iquitos. You
need to head into the jungle 120 km in order to get to this reserve, and not
many tours go that far. However, if you really want to see wildlife, you will
want to get to this area where it is protected.
In addition to
many varieties of birds, you can see giant turtles, monkeys, black caimans, manatees
and, most spectacularly, pink dolphins. A particularly excellent way of taking
advantage of this lush area is by walking along the canopy trail which takes
you through the jungle at a height of more than 30 meters.
